On the morning of this Thursday (18), the directors of Clube de Regatas do Flamengo received the former mayor and candidate for governor of the State of Rio de Janeiro, Eduardo Paes, in Gávea. President Eduardo Bandeira de Mello, vice-presidents Ricardo Lomba (Soccer), Humberto Mota (Fla-Gávea), in addition to the general director, Bruno Spindel, presented the Rubro-Negro's project to take over the management of Maracanã after a new bidding process. Wilson Witzel, also a candidate for governor in the 2018 elections, was invited but there is still no confirmed date for the meeting with the Rubro-Negro board. 

After the meeting, Paes commented on the Mais Querido project. 

"President Bandeira de Mello and Ricardo Lomba expressed Flamengo's full willingness and willingness to participate in the new Maracanã concession. I've been saying this for a long time, emphasizing that it's impossible for the administration to be handled solely by one company, serving only corporate interests. It's also necessary to open up the possibility of Rio de Janeiro clubs participating," said the candidate. "I was very happy to see the results of Flamengo's administration and to hear about the possibility of the club participating in the stadium concession process," he added.

Eduardo Bandeira de Mello also discussed the meeting with Eduardo Paes and emphasized the importance of dialogue on the matter.

"The meeting was very positive. Flamengo took the initiative to reach out to the two candidates in the second round to present proposals on what would be best for Maracanã. We're thinking not only of Flamengo fans, but also of the taxpayers of the state of Rio de Janeiro. Paes was very receptive to our proposal. I'm confident that if he's elected, we'll have a good solution," said Bandeira.

Ricardo Lomba, Vice President of Football, praised the conversation with the candidate.

"The meeting with the former mayor was very positive because we discussed a very sensitive and important issue for the club: the stadium. We have the Maracanã ready, very well located, absolutely identified with the nation, and we have every interest in naming it Flamengo's stadium. Our project guarantees that we have the financial, management, and operational capabilities to take over the Maracanã. This, of course, doesn't preclude the venue from being used by other teams. I think Eduardo Paes was very pleased with what he saw and with knowing that we have the administrative and financial capacity to move forward with the project," stated Lomba.